<p>First of all, there is a difference between financial aid and merit awards, though there could be overlap. In order to get financial aid, you have to meet each school’s definition of need. For those schools that tend to be generous in meeting need, a special form, usually CSS PROFILE is needed in addition to the absolutely required form for any aid which is FAFSA. FAFSA gives you a number which is the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) that basically determines eligibility for federal money. If your EFC is super low (your will not be), you may be eligible for a PELL grant. If your EFC is less than the total cost of your college (COA), then you may borrow subsidized loans and/or apply for work study for the difference up to the limits (which are not all that high if you are looking at private colleges). If your EFC exceeds the COA, which is going to likely be your situation if you do not some special circumstance such as multiple kids in college, then all you are going to get from the government, if you want it, is a non subsidized Stafford loan up to $5500 as a freshman. Your parents can borrow money for your COA through PLUS, also government backed, if they meet the credit requirements.</p>
<p>Colleges also have their own stash of money, and if you have financial need according to their definition, they may give you some of their money in form of loans and grants as well. This is all, only if you meet the definition of financial need. Only a few school guarantee to meet 100% of need, and there are also some more schools, not a whole lot who will meet most of your need,</p>
<p>Merit awards are a whole different situation. Many, though not all, merit awards do not take financial need into consideration or will take it only partly into consideration. For some of these awards, just applying to the school automatically puts you in contention for that money. Others have separate applications and/or deadlines and you have to put your own hat in the ring to be considered. College websites often describe the merit awards that they sponsor and give you the requirements and instructions on how to apply for them. </p>
<p>As a rule, the more selective the college, the more difficult it is to get merit money. Many of the most selective schools, like the ivies, many of the select LACs, MIT do not give any scholarship money. Only money for financial need, so if you don’t have need according to them, you don’t get any money outside of the Stafford and PLUS options. For those schools that have merit money, you need to read the individual requirements for those scholarships since they can be very different and all over the map.</p>
<p>Talk to your parents and find out what you can realistically afford for college. Harvard costs over $55K a year, for instance, and they do not give out any money except for need. So if you don’t meet their definition of need (and in that case, you just might qualify for a bit even in your financial situation) you won’t get any scholarships. If you apply to a school like Denison College or George Washington, you might be eligible for some scholarships.</p>
<p>Your best bet for merit money is to apply to schools where you are the absolutely top applicant. If the school gives 10% of its kids merit awards, if you want a sizeable amount, you had better be in their top 5%. Test scores are very important for most merit awards. You can get an idea of how scholarships are given to many schools by looking in the US News and World Report front section where they list financial aid and merit average amounts and % of kids getting the money. </p>
<p>You can also look at outside scholarships by signing up with FAst Web and keeping yourself aware of community and organization scholarships that are around in your area.</p>
<p>Good luck and happy hunting.</p>